Wednesday, February 17, 2010

February 15, 2010 - Marathon, Florida

Our month in Marathon flew by, with many beautiful sunsets. Between the generator repair, three coats of varnish, Saturday Farmer’s Markets, Sunday night’s free hot dogs at the Yacht Club, local art fairs and an overnight vacation, we have been very busy.
Every day, something interesting is going on. Here, a boater takes a smooth sail around the harbor in his small sailboat.
Many days, it is quite windy in the harbor. Here is one morning when it was not. Notice the boats pointed in all directions at their moorings.
We hosted an impromptu dinner party for new friends Liz and Steve, and Joyce and Wayne.
While at the Marathon Yacht Club dock for our generator repair, a beautiful storm blew up, first with dark clouds, then a torrent of rain.
As we made our way back to our mooring ball, dolphins played in our wake. Later, Chuck and Linda Throm, from the Detroit area, and more locally from their RV park in Bonita Springs, visited us for a few days,.
One of many conveniences here is the mobile pumpout boat. It visits all moored boats once a week for a holding tank pump out.
On one Saturday, there were two art fairs, which we attended.
Jerry organized a Great Loop gathering, for boaters in the harbor who have completed the Great Loop around the eastern half of the US, for those in process, and for those considering it. The event was announced on the daily VHF Cruiser’s Net, and was attended by about 35 people, who swapped stories and memories.
Our overnight “vacation” was our excursion to the Miami Boat Show. This seems to be our virtually annual pilgrimage, where we viewed beautiful new boats and every possible piece of equipment. We rented a car to drive from Marathon, stayed at a South Beach beachfront hotel, and walked to the show. Lincoln Road is our favorite spot there for dinner and people watching. Locals and vacationers alike dress up and strut their stuff. For women here, the minimum shoe heel-height is four inches!
As you can see from this photo, the mooring field here in Boot Key Harbor is immense, with about 280 boats on mooring balls, and another 75 or so at anchor. This provides a vibrant community, complete with daily VHF radio Cruiser’s Net, weekly “Meet and Greet” potlucks, yoga lessons, and fun for all.

No comments: